Daggerford
Daggerford is a town that lies along the Shining River on the Sword Coast in the Western Heartlands. It is a walled town with a population of approximately 900, with a number of outlying hamlets, farms and estates bringing the population to over 2,000. The town is strategically placed along the Trade Way and fortified by the local duke's dwarven-crafted castle. It is primarily a farming community, but a desire to grow and be seen as an alternative to the northern city Waterdeep has caused the town to actively seek craftsmen and artisans. Its streets are unpaved and the buildings are ramshackle in appearance. Who Rules Duke Pwyll Greatshout Daggerford (Pwyll Daggerford]]), a young man whose father, Pryden Daggerford, fell in battle with the hordes of Dragonspear Castle. His adventuring career was cut short by his elder brother Merovy’s death, and he has never been comfortable in his role. Who Really Rules Duke Pwyll, with the support of his family and court, together with the Council of Guilds, a self-conscious imitation of Waterdeep’s Council of Lords. Population 300 or so. About 20 farming hamlets lie within a day’s walk, along with minor noble estates, bringing the true population to around 1,000. The population is strongly human; there are a couple of halfling families in town, and precious few other non-humans. Major Products Trade in horses, cattle, and repacking for merchants and drovers. Carpenters fashion goods from lumber brought in from Bowshot, and Daggerford has three smiths and an excellent jeweler. Armed Forces Daggerford’s principal fighting force is its militia, led by Sherlen Spearslayer, a newcomer to Daggerford. She reports to the Duke’s Master at Arms, Lord Sir Llewellyn Long-Hand. Notable Rogues’ and Thieves’ Guilds None. The closest thing this town has to a thieves’ guild is the elf Filarion Filvendorson, but his talents are confined to adventuring. Equipment Shops *Derval’s Bright Blade is run by Derval Ironeater, a dwarf who came to Daggerford with his two brothers about a century ago. He is highly regarded in the town, and supports a fairly large extended family with his forge. He also builds stone houses. *Cromach and Wayfel are the two human smiths in town; Cromach does serviceable work, but ‘shaky as Wayfel’s best’ is a common local saying. Adventurers’ Quarters There are two taverns and one inn in town: *The Lady Luck Inn, a former warehouse whose owners, a trading concern wiped out by an orc raid, granted it to an adventurer who helped destroy the orcs. That adventurer’s son, Owenden Orcslayer, now runs it. This place is decorated with adventurer’s trophies and relics. Don’t touch the drink reserved for Tymora herself! The main entertainment center for the nobility of the surrounding lands and Daggerford’s major notables is the River Shining Tavern. The main hall doubles as the meeting room for the Council of Guilds. * The Happy Cow Tavern, owned and run by the halfling, Fulbar Hardcheese. He doesn’t discuss his adventurous past, and prefers the clientele of farmers and townsmen. There is also a general livery stable on the south side of town. Important Persons *Lady Bronwyn Daggerford, Duke Pwyll’s lovely elder sister, was skipped upon her father’s death in favor of a male heir. She has studied sorcery under Gwydion, and has an adventurous streak. * Kelson Darktreader is the half-elven Master of the duke’s Hunt, and no one knows the Misty Forest and High Moor better than he. *Ronan Stormweather was once head of Waterdeep’s Mariners’ Guild; though retired, his wealth makes him an influential voice. Important Features in Town The ducal castle is a three-story stone keep on a hill, surrounded by a high wall. About fifty people live inside. The two-story Guildmaster’s Hall is relatively new in town, and contains meeting halls for the guildmasters, as well as offices for the representatives of various Waterdhavian trading companies. *Korbus’s Jewels and Fine Ornaments is run by Korbus Brightjewel, a gnomish jeweler who prefers Daggerford to busy Waterdeep. He is often visited by proxies of Waterdeep’s wealthy. *Farrel’s Fine Jewels and Apparel is Daggerford’s branch of a Waterdhavian trading company, offering fine clothes at steep prices. *The Marketplace is the site of the market which takes place on every fiveday and tenday of each ride. Farmers and small merchants bring goods to the marketplace and sell them from temporary booths. The residential area of town is divided into four Quarters: Caravan, Farmers’, Money, and Rivermen’s. *The Caravan Quarter is a section of wooden buildings, mostly hotels and shops, with a largely transient population. It is deserted in wintertime, when the caravans stop. Most non-humans live here. *The Farmers’ Quarter is mostly occupied by the farmers who till the soil north of town. This area is noisy and has a definite odor. *The wealthy people of Daggerford live in the Money Quarter, including merchants who don’t live above their shops and a couple of rich former adventurers. Some minor nobles keep small townhouses here. *The Rivermen’s Quarter belongs to fishermen and some merchants who make regular runs up the Delimbyr to Secomber and back. Local Lore The town of Daggerford got its name from an incident that happened about 400 years ago. A wagon master sent his son, Tyndal, ahead of the family wagon one evening to find a safe passage across the Shining River. The boy located a ford, but he was ambushed by a party of lizardfolk. Tyndal slew six of the creatures with his only weapon, a dagger, and held off the rest until reinforcements arrived from the wagon. True or otherwise, the dukes of Daggerford claim to be Tyndal’s direct descendants. The duke’s arms are a bloody silver dagger on a blue field. When the elves and dwarves of the Fallen Kingdom left the North, the Kingdom of Man rose in their wake. The dukes settled in Daggerford at that time, weathering the Kingdom’s collapse two generations later. After about a century, the duke’s subjects began building their shops and homes outside the castle walls, closer to the river. The resulting town was given its own charter by Duke Conan in the Year of the Mace (1307 DR), and Duke Pwyll lets the Council of Guilds govern the town. Every healthy resident of Daggerford is required to enlist in the militia—only pregnant women and the mothers of young children are exempted. Even transients of the proper age (15 to 35, for humans) find themselves either enlisting or moving on. The territory is still frontierland, and everyone must be ready to defend their homes. The most recent threat to Daggerford was the rise of evil forces in Dragonspear Castle. Strengthened by Lower Planar powers, the High Moors goblinkind tribes devastated much of the Trade Way, until Daggerford and Waterdeep attacked Dragonspear Castle. This siege lasted almost two years, finally ending last spring. Priests of Tempus maintain a shrine there, but there has been no trouble there since the Feast of the Moon. Daggerford has its share of gossip. Here is some of the latest: *Duke Pwyll and Lady Bronwyn would rather adventure than rule. Bronwyn, already a capable wizard, has rejected a number of suitors. She’s got the dagger Tyndal used at the ford all those years ago. *No one knows who Lord Llewellyn’s parents were, but Duke Conan raised him to nobility. Some say he’s Conan’s son. *Gwydion spends most of his time cooped up in the castle library—what he’s up to is anyone’s guess. *Mab died not long after she turned her post over to Gwydion, but nobody’s gone to her tower and knocked on the door to find out. *Fulbar Hardcheese has a secret cache of gold from his adventuring days, hidden somewhere in his tavern. *No one knows where Derval Ironeater and his family came from, but they brought a lot of Fallen Kingdom coins to equip their forge. *Korbus Brightjewel enhances his work with magic. *Elorfindar Floshin has had four elf children and several half-elf children. One of his sons, Filvendor-Kelson and Filarion’s father-disappeared into the east some twenty years ago. *The Delimbyr family got their fortune from thievery. You can tell just by looking at the prices at the River Shining. *Liam Sunmist can raise the dead, but it isn’t easy for him. *There’s a lizardfolk witch doctor named Red-Eye out in the Lizard Marsh, trying to unify his people’s tribes. He wants to buy metal weapons from the town armory. Baron Cromm Redhand’s been in the Marsh, too, hunting—hopefully for lizardfolk. *Sherlen’s husband-what was his name?-never returned from his last adventure. Ronan’s daughter went missing recently, too. And Korin Ironeater’s been gone three years now. If his brothers know where he went, they aren’t telling. *Ronan’s luck just keeps getting worse. Greyson Talbot’s silver mine was overrun by goblins just last week! Stormweather’ll never see a single coin of his stake now. *There are catacombs below Dragonspear Castle that were there before Daeros built it. Those marauders didn’t create a gate to the Lower Planes—they found one. It’s still down there, somewhere. I heard a caravan from Calimshan just disappeared near the castle. *There’s fey things afoot out in the Laughing Hollow. Elves still walk the woods, along with pixies, centaurs, satyrs… there’s a circle of druids out there, too. One of the hills surrounding the Hollow is Illefarn, where the dwarves created wonders back in the days of the Fallen Kingdom. History The town takes its name from a 400-year-old legend about a boy named Tyndalwho fended off a tribe of lizardmen with only a dagger. The first community was built along the shores of the river at that spot. Notable buildings Goverment * Ducal Castle Services * Hospice of Saint Cecilia Inns and taverns * The Dragonback Inn * The Happy Cow * River Shining Tavern * Lady Luck Tavern * The Black Stone Inn Shops * Derval's Bright Blade * Farrel's Fine Jewels and Apparel * Korbus's Jewels and Fine Ornaments * Oleg's Weaponforge * Wayfel's Smithy Bussinesses * Yarth Stowage Temples and shrines * The Harvest House, temple dedicated to Chauntea, led by Lady Priestess Maerovyna. Daggerford’s apothecary, Duneden, is a priest here. * The Morninglow Tower, temple dedicated to Lathander, presided over by Lightlord Liam Sunmist. * Table of the Sword, shrine to Tempus, founded by the unpopular half-elf Baergon Bluesword, who came to town from Waterdeep during the Dragonspear incursions. * Fairfortune Hall, shrine to Tymora, attended by Bando the Lame, a crippled halfling. His new assistant is a Waterdhavian named Alathene. Homes * Delfen's Tower Notable Wizards *Delfen ‘Yellowknife’ Ondabarl (Delfen Ondabar)came to Daggerford about a decade ago, probably from Iriaebor. His age and degree of expertise are unknown, but he is well-liked in Daggerford, and has many apprentices. * Gwydion pen Dafwyd is Wizard to the Duke of Daggerford, a mantle passed to him by his teacher, Mab, before her retirement. A self-pronounced expert on the dukedom’s history, he has no time to share his lore with anyone not of noble blood. * Sir Elorfinar Floshin’s estate, the House of Long Silences, lays quite a ways from town, but this gold elf mage often helps his human neighbors. He has many children. Category:Small towns Category:Settlements in the Western Heartlands